The Dayton name: A Minnesota institution since 1903

Mark Dayton greeted the press following his Nov. 9 meeting with Gov. Pawlenty.

One of this state's most recognizable names will be attached to Minnesota's highest political office when Mark Dayton is sworn in as governor in January.

For nearly 100 years, starting in 1903, Dayton's family name was prominently displayed on the front of the Nicollet Avenue department store that became the flagship of a far-flung retail empire.

That empire's founder, George Draper Dayton, the governor-elect's great grandfather, was an ambitious real-estate developer from Worthington, Minn., who began buying property in downtown Minneapolis in the early 1890s.

In 1895, when fire destroyed the Westminster Presbyterian Church at 7th and Nicollet, Dayton purchased the site from the church for $165,000. Later, he extended his holdings until he controlled the full frontage along Nicollet between 7th and 8th streets. By 1901, Dayton, who would soon relocate to Minneapolis, began building a six-story building on his downtown block.

MHS

George Draper Dayton

Anchor tenant needed for new buildingThe shrewd developer knew he needed an anchor tenant for his new property, then on the outskirts of the downtown retail district, and he found one by persuading a struggling department store, Goodfellows Dry Goods, to relocate to his Nicollet Avenue building. As an added inducement to get Goodfellows to move to the new location, Dayton, himself, became a part owner of the business.

Goodfellows opened its doors in Dayton's building for the first time in 1902. Within a year, Dayton had bought out his partners and put his own name on the Nicollet Avenue store, where it stayed until 2001.

In 1906, the elder Dayton named his son, Draper, general manager of the store, known at this point as Dayton's Dry Goods. Soon, Draper brought his younger brother, Nelson, into the business with him. By 1910, the younger Daytons and their father had boosted annual sales to nearly $2 million, a threefold increase over what they had been eight years earlier, when Goodfellows opened for business at 7th and Nicollet. Then, in 1911, Dayton's Dry Goods became The Dayton Company, the name that would continue to identify the downtown department store for more than a half century.

Courtesy of the Minnesota Historical Society

Dayton's first newspaper ad appeared in the May 23, 1903, issue of the Minneapolis Journal.

When Draper Dayton died unexpectedly of a heart attack at the age of 43, his brother Nelson obtained a controlling interest in the business. Nelson would live to see the Dayton Company's annual sales exceed $60 million by the time he died in 1950.

Control passes to five sonsThat year, control of the company passed to Nelson's five sons, then all under the age of 36. The brothers — Mark's father, Bruce, and Bruce's four siblings, Donald, Wallace, Kenneth and Doug — vastly expanded the family business established by their grandfather in 1903. During the brothers' era, their company built the country's first indoor, climate controlled shopping center at Southdale, established the Target chain of discount stores, and acquired the Michigan-based J.L. Hudson Company. That acquisition brought about a name change. The Dayton Co. would be known as the Dayton-Hudson Corp.

The brothers would also convert their family-owned business from a privately held operation to a publicly traded company. Gradually, they would bow out of active management, ceding control of the company to outside board members and investors.

Christmas decorations on the exterior of Dayton's in downtown Minneapolis in 1956.

The 21st century would bring a series of jarring changes to the company founded by George Draper Dayton at the start of the 20th century. In 1990, Dayton-Hudson had acquired the Chicago-based Marshall Field Co. Then, in 2000, Dayton-Hudson would change its name to the Target Corp., signifying the rise of the discount chain to the dominant position in the wide array of businesses operated under the corporation's umbrella.

In 2001, much to the chagrin of many long-time Twin Cities area customers, the Target Corp. expunged the name "Dayton's" from its department store chain, renaming the chain "Marshall Fields." In 2004, Target rid itself of its department stores in one fell swoop, selling off the entire chain, including what had once been the flagship store on the Westminster Church site. In 2005, that store, along with others in the chain, became Macy's.

The Dayton name is no longer displayed on the front of the department store in downtown Minneapolis, but that name will soon appear at a new location — on the front of the governor's office at the State Capitol in St. Paul.

I think what made Dayton's famous and respected was their meticulous attention to service. I remember a story my mother was fond of telling. The year was very early 1930s and we lived near 56th St and 54th Ave - it was sparsely built-up then. Mom had been downtown the day before (using the streetcars) and bought some sewing project stuff; fabric, thread, etc. The next day she realized some of the thread was off-color and didn't match the fabric. So she called Daytons (on our very old fashioned phone) and explained her dilemma. What did Daytons do - the sent a person out with spools of all the shades of the color they had and she helped mom pick out the best match AT NO CHARGE. Can you imagine even the best of them these days doing anything near that!

"Many people voted for Guvner Markie D simply because they recognized his name. Such a sad state that our citizens have allowed themselves to fall into."

Yes, it's sad that people like you are so blinded by Republican ideology that you deride others for making decisions that are contrary to your agenda. That is the sad state that ill-informed Republicans like yourself have created.

@susan maricle: what a great story! my grandmother worked at dayton's for years, and even marched in the winter carnival parade with the dayton's crew - wool uniforms were made for the employees (though i think she might have had to purchase it). by coincidence, the day the name changed from dayton's to marshall field's on the exterior of the maplewood store, we were driving by... and she flipped the bird at the store! regardless of the name changes, dayton's will always be dayton's in our family, too!

When did the Daytons Downtown Store install the A.C. system?
I remember an eating place called the Tiffin Room. Did this exsist, or
is it a figment of my imagination? I believe they brought food on trays
and placed it in a holder in front of you.
What great memories I have of Daytons. There is nothing like it anywhere!!!